How to tell if a toy is collectible

1. There are three key factors that determine if a particular toy, doll, truck, or game will become valuable:
   • Rarity - how many were originally made.
   • Condition - both of the toy and the original packaging that may still exist. 
   • Cachet - The degree to which it is desirable, and sought after because people want it.

• Remember: Not every old toy in good condition is valuable. However, older "classics" such as Barbie Dolls, Match Book Cars and Hot Wheels have a better likelihood of increasing in value. And also remember that, ultimately, value is only what someone is willing to pay for your toy.

• Not every toy that is labeled as "Special Collector's Edition" is a special collector's edition manufactured in limited quantities. This term has increasingly become simply another marketing term used to try to create cachet for a given toy -- no matter how any are made.

• However, some items truly are collector's items because their quantities are so low. For example, the items used in press kits that are used to introduce movies may only be made in quantities of hundreds for very special audiences. Real cachet based on limited quantities can translate into substantial value to collectors.

• Timing can also help create value. For example, if the manufacturer is extensively promoting a toy's 'anniversary', this can create a 'halo effect' around all similar toys, and help create demand.

• There are a number of sources you can use to get an idea of what a toy is worth: flea markets, antique shows and shops, price guides, dealers who specialize in a particular toy or brand and eBay. (Note: As a registered user on eBay, you can click on "advanced search" for a particular toy, and then click the box, "Completed Listing Only" to see what that toy actually sold for in recent transactions. It also lists the number of bids that a particular item received. This is an excellent way to gauge buyer interest and the value of your toy.)

• While antique shops and used merchandise stores offer an occasional bargain, most of them are becoming savvy about the real value of their items.

• To sell a toy, consider the sources already referenced, and don't forget consignment shops.

• And don't forget: What makes toys really valuable is the fun that our children and we get from playing with them. If you really like an item, want to collect it for yourself, or think it might become valuable, buy two -- one for you to store in its pristine condition in your attic, and one to play with and enjoy!

I'm Ron Corning for Howdini.com. When you're shopping for your child's birthday or holiday gifts do you ever wonder if this particular doll, truck or board game may someday be really valuable?  It has us wondering what exactly makes a collectible toy. Here's the man with the answers, the toy guy, Chris Byrne. He is editor-at-large for Toys and Family Entertainment as well as Royalties, and a contributing editor of Toy Wishes. Chris, it's good to have you here.

Thank you.

Let's start with the guideline. What exactly is a collectible? Because the first thing you think is an old toy in good shape is worth money. Is that true?

Not always. It depends on the toy. Certainly old Barbies, old Hot Wheels, old Matchbox cars. Classics that people want to collect. Of course, collectibles only have the value that someone is willing to pay for at any given time.

It's become easier, though, to determine exactly what someone might pay for something, thanks to places like eBay. Like, you can literally get on there and search for the item you have and see if anyone is paying anything for those sorts of things.

Absolutely.  Anything from GI Joes to Barbie, and there are all types of price guides out. There are actually dealers that trade in these specific brands.

How do you know if you have something that might be, someday, be worth value? I was at my mom's house. She's planning a yard sale, I see all these toys from the 70s that most of which I hadn't played with. They’re not in their original packaging, but they're in good shape. A McDonald's Playland with all the pieces, Weebles, the Pirate Island, the Haunted Mansion; what is that stuff worth, anything at all?

Well, it's certainly worth something if somebody's willing to pay for it. It has to be in good condition. It doesn't always matter if you've got the original packaging, but you've got to find the right person to buy it, the right person who will, say, put it in their shop and perhaps take it on consignment.

How about the timing, though? I'm thinking when McDonald’s celebrates a big anniversary it might be worth more than it is now. We've got this Care Bear here. It's the 25th Anniversary Edition. Are they worth more now at 25 years old than they were a year ago?

Well, certainly if they haven't been played with, the 25-year-old Care Bear is going to be worth more because everybody's thinking about them. The 25th Anniversary Bear itself is positioned as a collectible. You're going to see a lot of people buying them. They'll sell every one they can make, and then people will still want them, so the value's going to go up.

Okay, here's the catch though, I would think you shouldn't be buying toys for your children hoping they'll be collectibles, because what do they know about keeping stuff in the packaging? They want to play with the stuff.

Well absolutely. If you're buying a child a toy the last think you want to do is say, “Here's a toy we're going to put it on the shelf and you can look at it.” What fun is that?

If you think something's going to be collectible, should you buy one for your child and one for yourself?

Well, definitely; I mean if you want to be the collector, that's great. But your children should have the fun of playing with the toys.

How do we know when somebody puts on packaging “Special Collectors Edition” that that's really what it's going to become? We don't know how many of those they've manufactured.

Well, that's true, and Barbie is a great example. A 1959 Barbie in mint condition is worth thousands of dollars because so many little girls played with them. In recent years they have put out a lot of collectors’ editions; a lot of people bought them. Twenty years from now, you are going to see a lot of them on the market, so the price is not going to be huge.

Another interesting part of collecting relates to those of us who work in the media. These press kits that are sent out for movies, movie junkets, stuff they hand out to reporters when they interview celebrities. Star Wars Revenge of the Sith is an example of that. That's worth $1,500?

 And you can find them on eBay, and they only made several hundred of them and it's got a magical thing where the character transforms when you open the press kit. So that's something the Star Wars collector wants because it wasn't put into the mainstream and it wasn't a product that anyone can get. So it has a real caché of being very special.

So Chris, we've talked about eBay. It's kind of the best-known online option for researching what some of these toys might be worth. But what about some of the old standbys? You go to a flea market or an antique show, there are people still there that can give you some idea of what your stuff might be worth.

Absolutely. And that's part of the fun. If you're really into toy collecting it's going into the antique shops and finding things; and I've found everything from an original Easy Bake Oven to an original Teddy Ruxpin to some early Match Box cars, all of them really good bargains; but increasingly these guys know what the value of what they have is.
So how often do you assess the value of the stuff that you have?

Not that often. I buy it because I like it. And that's really any collector. They should buy things because they want to have it, it means something to them not necessarily as a hedge against a financial future.

What's the difference between a packrat and a collector?

A million dollars.

Right, probably. A collection's worth something, packrat has junk.
A

ll right. Chris Byrne is editor-at-large for Toys and Family Entertainment as well as Royalties. Chris, thank you.

Thank you.

He's also a contributing editor of Toy Wishes and I'm Ron Corning for howdini.com.